Social Security Benefits: Fraud

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many cases of potential fraud were investigated where the Department considered there to be a high probability of prosecution in each of the last five years for which information is available; how many cases of potential fraud were taken to court; and how many cases achieved a conviction.

Tony McNulty: The available information for DWP administered benefits is in the following table.
	
		
			   Number of cases referred  for prosecution  Number prosecuted  Number of convictions  Number of cases taken to court that accepted an alternative sanction 
			 2003-04 10,048 10,358 9,027 n/a 
			 2004-05 10,915 10,295 9,219 261 
			 2005-06 9,814 10,262 8,740 170 
			 2006-07 10,166 8,964 6,861 206 
			 2007-08 10,288 10,274 7,745 278 
			 n/a = Not available  Notes: 1. All cases for criminal investigation are taken forward as having the potential to result in prosecution; alternative sanctions of caution and administrative penalty are only offered on the basis that, if refused, prosecution remains an option for the Department. Decisions on whether a sanction and which type is appropriate are, rightly, only made when an investigation has been completed. 2. The number of cases prosecuted each year may exceed the number of cases referred for prosecution due to the length of time that can occur between referral and an available court date.  Sources: 1. Prosecution and conviction data for England and Wales from DWP/DH Legal Group. 2. Number of cases taken to court that accepted an alternative sanction (England and Wales only) from DWP/DH Legal Group. 3. Prosecution and conviction data for Scotland from FIBS and FRAIMS 4. No of cased referred for prosecution, administrative penalties and cautions data from FIBS and FRAIMS. 
		
	
	Additionally figures for housing benefit are shown as follows.
	
		
			   Prosecutions  Convictions 
			 2003-04 4,601 3,747 
			 2004-05 5,544 4,688 
			 2005-06 6,041 6,234 
			 2006-07 6,023 5,860 
			 2007-08 6,611 6,493 
			  Note: The decision to prosecute is taken by the appropriate local authority.  Source: Local authority housing benefit administrative returns.